Converting AS400 Spool Files To Excel

Converting iSeries spool files to Excel
CONTENTS
- Top 10 issues resolved!

Overview
Issue (1):
Removing column
headings and
blank lines OVERVIEW
Issue (2): If you visit an iSeries/AS400 site and speak to the business users and ask them how they
Formatting ultimately report on the information stored on their machine, 8 out of 10 of them will say via
columns correctly an Excel spreadsheet. Have you ever seen a green bar report cut and pasted into a board
into Excel report? Have you ever seen a sales meeting where a green bar report is put on the overhead
projector or into a data show?
Issue (3):
Converting The tool of choice is Excel.
negative numbers
Say what you like about Bill Gates, but 65 million Excel users can’t all be wrong!
Issue (4): Data
mining –
Regular users of Excel know just how powerful a tool it can be to analyse numeric data and to
conditional
present information in a clear and concise fashion. The problem if you are an iSeries/AS400
selection of rows
site is that your data warehouse is not immediately accessible to your Excel spreadsheets.
More often than not your main financial reports are generated into iSeries/AS400 spool files,
Issue (5): De-
and frequently from 3rd party application software that simply cannot be modified in house.
normalising level
breaks into Excel
The result can be a data export nightmare.
Issue (6):
Exporting large and/or complex reports that originate from iSeries/AS400 spool files into Excel
Handling spool
spreadsheets can create numerous challenges for business users and IT staff alike, but with
files that are too
the right tools and a little “know how” life can be simple again!
big for Excel
This whitepaper identifies the top 10 issues facing users that need to export iSeries/AS400
Issue (7): Saving
spool file data into Excel spreadsheets and how to resolve them. The emphasis is on seamless
spool file run
automation – click and display solutions.
parameters into
Excel
Issue (8): Adding Did you know? “There are an estimated 65 million
graphing and users of Microsoft Excel worldwide and the number is
special formatting
still increasing”
Issue (9):
Automated
conversion to
The top 10 issues relating to exporting iSeries spool files into Excel are:
Excel
(1) Removing column headings and blank lines
Issue (10): Real
(2) Correctly formatting columns into Excel
time distribution
(3) Converting negative numbers
of spool files into
(4) Data mining – conditional selection of spool file rows
Excel
(5) De-normalising level breaks against rows to include a key or index for the row
(6) Handling spool files that are too big for Excel
The Case Study:
(7) Saving spool file run parameters into Excel
Nike’s Excel
(8) Adding graphing and special formatting
automation
(9) Re-using and sharing your Excel format definitions
project
(10) Automated real-time distribution of spool files into Excel via email or intranet
Conclusion
Read on and wake up from your data exporting nightmare!
www.SpooliT.net Converting iSeries spool files to Excel – Top 10 issues resolved!
Quotes from
Issue (1)
users Removing column headings and blank lines
(…Overheard near
your printer) The single biggest hassle of exporting an iSeries/AS400 spool file into an Excel spreadsheet is
inheriting the cosmetic “window dressing” along with the data you really need. When data is
imported into an Excel spreadsheet, it is usually because you need to manipulate the
“I’ve lost my information in some way; whether it is to perform formulas on columns or to include graphs,
report” or to make some other change to the way that the information is presented.
When spool files are printed in hardcopy you need to have certain page and column headings,
as well as blank lines that act as visual “breaks” to make the report easier to read. Any page
“Who took my from the spool file may be separated from the rest of a report and still needs to make sense.
report off the Page numbers may also be required to keep the various hardcopy report pages in sequence.
printer?”
“I need this in
Excel - not on
paper”
“Why does it take

so long to re-run
reports?”
Figure 1: Example of a hardcopy report
These important visual “tricks” and formatting might be necessary to convey the printed
report information in the most easily understandable fashion to the reader, but exported into
“What do you
Excel they may serve only to render the spreadsheet practically unusable. At least, not
mean you can’t
without some significant manual editing.
reprint my
report?”
If the report in Figure 1 above was imported directly into Excel using Excel’s built in Text
Import Wizard, it would look something like this:
“Why do we waste
so much paper?”
“I can’t read this

page because the
toner ran out”
“Is the printer

jammed again?”
Figure 2: Example of hardcopy report imported into Excel
Before this spreadsheet can be used for anything meaningful, the next step would be to
conduct a manual “clean up” of the data. A user would be required to page through the
spreadsheet, row by row, deleting out the lines containing page headers, totals, blank lines,
level breaks and so on. This is a slow laborious process, and most people have better things
to do with their time. There has to be a better way – the good news is that there is!
Did you know? “Of a 1000 regular Excel users

surveyed, 55% never use 9 out of 10 of the most
powerful features”
© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 2 of 33

Key points
Solution (1)
Removing column headings and blank lines
The removal of unwanted column headings, blank lines, and sub-total lines from reports
when exported to Excel can be easily automated with the use of a 3rd party document
management solution. There are essentially two main ways of removing the rows that are
not required; Omission Rules OR Selection Rules.
The example 3rd party software described in this whitepaper is SpooliT®, a document
management solution from Asymex. SpooliT® uses a method known as “Templates” to define
rules about how an iSeries or AS400 report should be imported into Excel. However, the
concepts described may well apply to other 3rd party software solutions singularly or in
combination.
Omission Rules: These rules are defined to tell the software to automatically drop report
lines from being imported into Excel when they contain certain text strings. This is the
simplest way of ensuring unwanted lines do not find their way into the Excel spreadsheet.
Figure 3: SpooliT® template omission rule
In the example above (Figure 3) any row containing the text string “Total Qty:” starting in
column 61 of the spool file will be automatically dropped and not imported in to the resulting
Excel spreadsheet. This is an effective way of removing rows such as Total lines that may look
very similar in structure and position to the detail lines that may be required. In the example
above the user simply “drags and drops” to highlight a unique text string in the row that they
wish to omit, they are then prompted to create a row omission rule for their Template.
Interestingly the SpooliT®software also allows for the creation of an explicit selection rule,
which behaves in the exact opposite to the omission rule, which may be required to select
rows that are being otherwise dropped (this feature would allow for the concept of “Omit all
rows containing this text string except where they contain this other value”).
Another omission rule may allow certain types of lines to be automatically dropped, for
example blank lines.
In the case of SpooliT®, elimination of blank lines is as simple as specifying a parameter value
on the template used to convert the spool file to Excel.

Figure 4: SpooliT® template properties

In the example above (Figure 4), simply selecting “Ignore blank lines in Spool File” will cause
blanks lines in the originating spool file to be dropped as they are imported into Excel.
Selection Rules: Using a 3rd party software you may be able to define rules which map
specific lines from the reports you want imported into Excel, with the software being
“intelligent” enough to recognize lines based on the definitions you have created.
Figure 5: SpooliT® template column definitions

In the example above (Figure 5) the columns of data that are wanted in Excel have been
defined, and the SpooliT® software is smart enough to drop lines that don’t match the ones
required. For example, the template rule has defined that an Order Quantity value starts in
column 70; SpooliT® will then automatically drop any report lines that do not have a numeric
value or blanks in this specified column position. This will cause column headings and page
headings to be dropped from being imported into Excel.
With the correct row omission and selection information specified, only the desired rows are
imported into Excel. This eliminates the time consuming process of manually reading through
your spreadsheet each time you import a spool file into it and deleting the lines that are not
required.

The resulting spreadsheet should look something like the example below:
Key points
Figure 6: Spreadsheet with unwanted rows dropped
With any good spool file management software you should be able to obtain results like this
with a few minutes of initial setup and then simply drag and drop or click a button to convert
your spool files to excel.
Problem (1) solved!

Key points
Issue (2)
Formatting columns correctly into Excel
The Excel “Text When traditional methods are used to “dump” spool files into Excel there are a number of
Import Wizard” inherent problems caused by the restrictive and rigid nature of the process itself. There are
definition cannot many way of delivering this information; the most common way is to transfer the report “as
be saved is” via client access as a text file and then use the built in function of Excel, the “Text Import
Wizard” to manually format the data (Excel -> Data -> Get External Data -> Import Text
Traditionally you File). The second most common method involves programming effort to dump the report into
cannot “drop” a CSV (comma separated) file then again using the built in Excel feature to import a CSV file.
columns of data
Whilst both of these options will physically get the report information into Excel, it is not
Traditionally normally in a state that can be used immediately.
Column Order
cannot be So what are the problems with these traditional methods?
changed at 1. The Excel “Text Import Wizard” format cannot be saved and your specifications must
loading be re-entered each time you import data (once you start your next Excel session)
2. You can not automatically “drop” columns of data, you get everything that was
Traditionally Excel contained in the originating data
cell types cannot 3. You cannot change the order of the columns of data imported, they must initially be
be dynamically set imported in the same order as the originating data source
4. The Excel cell types are defaulted to “General”, so any text fields that contain
numbers will be treated as numeric and right aligned
Use spool file
management We all have better things to do with our time than make format edits to an Excel spreadsheet.
software to define Wouldn’t it be great if you could save a definition of how you wanted the report data to look
re-usable Excel and it would be “remembered” each time your imported similar report data into Excel? - read
import rules on, your problems may be solved!
Use spool file Did you know? “In 1981 US business consumed an
management
software to drop estimated 850 billion pages of paper. By 1986, amid
unwanted claims that the paperless office had arrived, the total
columns had risen to 2.5 trillion pages.... In 1990, business
was using 4 trillion pages”
Use spool file
management
software to
automatically re-
sequence columns
at load
Solution (2)
Use spool file The solution to this problem is to again use a 3rd party spool file management software that
management allows you to specify rules or a saved “definition” of how to import data for a particular report
software to type into Excel. The software that will be used to illustrate the solution to the above problems
default Excel cell is SpooliT® but the needs that are met by this software are universal.
types by column
1. You need to be able to save your Excel import “definitions”: SpooliT® allows you define
a set of rules to map data from a particular spool file type into Excel, and then save
these rules as an Excel “Template”. These “Templates” may be saved externally to the
SpooliT® application as “.tpl” files (a proprietary format) which can then be shared
amongst other users of the software.

Figure 7: Working with templates within SpooliT®
2. A good spool file management solution will also allow you to define rules about which
columns you want to import into Excel. You should be able to define different “views”
over a single report, depending on what elements of the report you wish to focus on.
This will essentially allow you to pick and choose which information from the report
you want - if you do not need all the data in Excel why import it? Removing clutter
allows the report message to be more clearly expressed. Within the SpooliT®
application this is achieved by simply selecting which columns are required with the
Template definition. Once the template is defined it can be used again and again each
time a new source spool file is created, “remembering” the rules about how the report
should look when imported into Excel.
Figure 8: Selecting the "Cust No" column in SpooliT® Template

In the example above the user has “dragged and dropped” to highlight the customer
number column “Cust No.” to indicate that this column is required in to be imported
into the Excel spreadsheet.
3. Once you have defined the rules about which columns of data you want imported into
Excel, changing the sort sequence or order in which they are imported into Excel
should be trivial. A good spool file management solution should either allow you to
select which columns within Excel the source data should be imported into (i.e.
explicitly choosing columns A or B or C etc) OR should allow you to change the
sequence relative to the other columns that you have selected. In SpooliT®, this is
achieved using the latter option. That is, you can re-order columns within your
template rules before the data is imported into Excel. The columns of data would then
be automatically inserted into Excel in the sequence that you require.
In the example below the sort sequence for the “Item Description” field has been
changed to “45” to move it after the “Order Quantity” field within the template
definition. This in effect moves the “Item Description” from Column C to Column D
when it is loaded into the spreadsheet (swapping places with the Order Quantity
field).
Figure 9: Changing the column order in a SpooliT® template
4. It is important to be able to choose the field type of the destinations column within
Excel. This allows for text fields to be aligned correctly, and for “special” fields like
date fields to be imported automatically into an immediately usable format without
further manipulation. Again a good spool file management solution should allow you
to define and save the destination field types for your Excel spreadsheet. In the case
of SpooliT®, each column defined with the Excel Template can have its field type set to
any valid Excel type. No further editing required!
Figure 10: Setting the Excel field types in SpooliT® templates
Problem (2) solved!

Key points
Issue (3)
Converting negative numbers
AS400/iSeries One of the more challenging aspects of importing reports created on the AS400/iSeries
negative numbers concerns negative numbers. In AS400 and iSeries reports, negative numbers normally have
normally have the negative symbol formatted on to the right hand side of the field.
their negative E.g. $2,000.05- or $2,000.05CR
symbol formatted
on the right hand In Microsoft Excel negative numbers are formatted with the negative symbol on the left hand
side side of the field.
E.g. -$ 2000.05
Excel requires
the negative As a result when a negative number is converted from an iSeries or AS400 report using
symbol on the traditional means the resulting field is treated as a text field in Excel. This means that your
left hand side normal numeric functions such as Sum will ignore this value.
Figure 11: Negative number in Excel without formatting
If a sum were applied to these values then Excel would give the result as 2267.70 (ignoring
rows 5 and 6 above) whereas the correct answer would be –5706.80.
Normally, the only way to correct this problem is for the user to read through the excel
spreadsheet after importing the AS400 or iSeries report and then manually convert each field
to a negative numeric. Not only is this a time consuming process but also it is also prone to
“human error” which can compromise the integrity of the data in the spreadsheet.
The solution is to use 3rd party document management software designed to convert negative
numbers for you without any unnecessary user intervention.
Did you know? “The average American office worker

is estimated to use a sheet of paper every 12
minutes. That’s a ream per person every two and a
half working weeks. That’s 100-200 pounds of paper
each year”
Solution (3)
Any good document management software that allows conversion of AS400 or iSeries reports
to Excel should automatically convert negative numbers formatted with the negative symbol
to the right of the last decimal place to a “true” negative number.
In the case of SpooliT®, formatting negative numbers is as simple as defining the field width
within the Excel Template function to include one or two characters to the right of the last
decimal place in the numeric field.
Figure 12: Selecting a negative column in SpooliT®

When this field above is imported into Excel the resulting spreadsheet for this column should
look like the following example:
Figure 13: Negative numbers correctly formatted into Excel
Not only has this saved the effort and cost of having to manually edit the resulting
spreadsheet, but now the possibility of user error has also been eliminated.
Problem (3) solved!

Key points
Issue (4)
Data mining – conditional selection of rows
Downloading large We import data from iSeries/AS400 reports into Excel generally because we either want to do
reports into Excel further analysis on the information (e.g. applying formulas etc), or to present the information
can be counter- in a more visually pleasing manner (e.g. graphing or formatting etc).
productive
Reports created on the iSeries/AS400 are often very large in content, and often try to be
Limited everything for everyone. Again this is often caused by the business reality of the architecture
iSeries/AS400 – iSeries/AS400 are often used to store large amount of data and the batch windows and CPU
resources to usage often dictates how many reports can be produced.
produce
“customized” Downloading large reports into Excel can be counter-productive. The Excel spreadsheets
reports become unwieldy to use and formulas slow down. Downloading an entire month’s sales
Figures into Excel when you only need a week is overkill. One solution is the use
Not all users are iSeries/AS400 query to refine your data selection – however most occasional users of the
trained to create iSeries/AS400 may not have the in-depth knowledge to do this. Another problem is that many
iSeries/AS400 reports may be built up from data from multiples files (again a reasonably complex option
queries with query to define for the average user). In addition, some reports can only be created at
certain times of the day, due to time or CPU limitations, or the availability of certain
Dedicated component data.
EIS/Data mining
solutions are Purchasing a dedicated EIS or data mining system and using a data warehouse may be
expensive and another solution, and there are indeed many occasions when this is necessary. However, the
complex downside is that such systems are notoriously expensive and complex to set up, and normally
require significant user training. Again this may be overkill for users that simply want to filter
Give control back report data by a limited set of data. There is another option that can give you additional
to your users - flexibility – let your spool file management software do it for you!
“win/win” for
business and IT
Did you know? “To store 2 million paper documents,
Create multiple an organization may spend between $20,000-
template “views”
over reports
$40,000 on filing cabinets alone. Those files could fit
on approximately 10 CD-ROMs”
Stop
programming
reports – use
query and Solution (4)
templates instead
The logical place to apply conditional selection of data into Excel is at the time the information
is extracted from the source spool files. Most good spool file management solutions that allow
you to export data from spool files will allow you to do this.
In SpooliT®, the example software that we are using in this whitepaper, this can be controlled
at the time columns are selected within Templates. Different templates can be defined over
the same spool file, allowing for different “views” over the same data with different data
mining attributes. For instance, one template may select only invoice lines greater than a
certain value; another may select invoices for a particular customer or product.
By using a simple graphical interface, end users can define their own “views” over reports
without the need for iSeries/AS400 Query training or even access to the iSeries/AS400, let
alone training on a dedicated MIS/EIS system. The same product that delivers their
information formatted into Excel can also be used to conditionally select the data they need.
In addition this eliminates the need to run additional reports on your iSeries/AS400 – the
“Super report” that does everything for everyone can finally be used for the purpose it was
intended.
This is a “win/win” solution for both business and IT users alike. The business finally has the
control back to deliver the information they need into Excel in a timely fashion – they can
change their minds and try different combinations without the time and cost of raising IT work
requests. From an IT point of view this means less pressure to support business requests to
extract different combinations of data and less pressure on the iSeries/AS400 to run more and
more report combinations. IT can focus their energies on areas that deliver other benefits to
your organisation.

The example screen shot below (Figure 14) shows how data mining attributes can be easily
applied to a column in a SpooliT® Excel Template. The values in the green box allow for data
mining attributes to be applied. In this case only report lines where the Order Quantity is
greater than 1000 will be imported into Excel. Standard Boolean operators can be defined,
including “Like” selecting values based on partial defined contents.
Figure 14: Data mining definition is SpooliT®
This solution leads on to a further “left field” concept: If the ultimate destination of a report is
into Excel, why spend the time creating a programmed report on the iSeries/AS400 that
presents the information in a “pretty” fashion. The IT area can simply “dump” a physical file
with query into a query out file which can then be imported with SpooliT® using an Excel
Template. The template will “data mine” the required information into Excel and format it in
whatever way the user requires. This will translate into a lead-time for creating a new report
measured in minutes rather than days or weeks using the traditional software development
cycle - think outside the square!
Problem (4) solved!

Key points
Issue (5)
De-normalising level breaks into Excel
A “normalized”
report is One of the major problems of importing data from iSeries/AS400 reports into Excel is that
essentially a most reports have been “normalized” to display the information in a visually appealing way
report that BUT to use Excel efficiently with meaningful formulas we sometimes need to have data de-
doesn’t display normalized.
redundant
information So what is “normalization” and “de-normalization”?
A “de-normalized” A “normalized” report is essentially a report that does not display redundant information. For
spreadsheet example, a sales report might be sorted by sales rep and show all sales for a particular time
includes key or period for each sales rep, starting each sales rep on a new page.
index information
against each row
in the spreadsheet
Traditional data
import methods
into Excel will not
result in a de-
normalized output
Use spool file

management
software to map
key or index Figure 15: Example of a normalized report
values to
appropriate In the example above (Figure 15), we can tell that the various detail lines relate to the sales
columns against rep “R00001 – Alex Martin”, without the need to see this sales rep’s details appearing against
each row each of the report lines. This sub-heading is also known as a “level break”.
Templates will However, if this report was imported into Excel we would normally need to see the sales rep
allow the de- code appearing against each row in the spreadsheet, essentially acting as a key or an index to
normalization that row.
rules to be
“remembered”
each time the
report in exported
into Excel
Figure 16: Example of a de-normalized spreadsheet
Using traditional methods of importing spool files into Excel will not give this result without
considerable manual intervention or additional programming. However, with the right
software this can be achieved automatically without any additional work every time you want
to download a report into Excel.
Did you know? “Consider the cost of buying paper

at $2 per ream. Add the cost of producing; printing,
copying, postage, consumables etc and the cost can
increase by up to 10 times the original cost - or up to
$20”

Solution (5)
Using a good spool file management solution you will be able to define level breaks or formats
within a report so that the software can recognize components of a report and then know
exactly where they should be mapped into your Excel spreadsheet.
This will normally involve “teaching” the software how to recognize a report line and where
each part of that line should be mapped.
In the case of SpooliT® this involves defining formats within each Excel Template that match to
each of the different line types you wish to import into Excel.
Figure 17: Defining a format in SpooliT®

In the example above (Figure 17), the Sales Rep line has been broken down into 3
components. SpooliT® is able to “recognize” a sales rep line by the fact that it contains a
constant text of “ACME Sales Rep” starting in column 1.
Figure 18: Defining a constant field in SpooliT®

By choosing a field type of “Skip Column” in the Define Field Attributes screen (Figure 18) the
constant is not mapped into the resulting Excel spreadsheet, and is only used to help SpooliT®
recognize a particular report line as being a Sales Rep format line.

The other fields within the format may then be mapped to the appropriate cells with the Excel
spreadsheet. The Sales Rep Code can be separated away from the Sales Rep Name and
placed it its own column, in this case Column A (Figure 19).
Figure 19: Sales Rep field
The Sales Rep Name can also be mapped to appear in column B (Figure 20).
Figure 20: Sales Rep Name field
In most cases when defining a format it is not necessary to have to define a constant type
field. The mere fact of describing a particular field as a numeric value in a certain column
position will automatically eliminate report lines that do not contain numbers in that constant
position.
By defining the Sales Rep format in this way we have now effectively de-normalized the Sales
Rep code and name into columns A and B respectively against each row of the spreadsheet.
Another format would now be created over the Detail Lines of the report, mapping the first
detail field against column C.
Figure 21: Defining the next format in SpooliT®

Each field in the Detail Line format may now be mapped to the appropriate column in Excel
and the Template saved. Each time the report in exported to Excel using this template, the
report will be automatically de-normalized.
Problem (5) solved!

Key points
Issue (6)
Handling spool files that are too big for Excel
The maximum The maximum size of an Excel spreadsheet is 65,536 rows by 256 columns that may seem
size of an Excel like an incredible size, but when you are importing iSeries/AS400 reports it can be surprisingly
spreadsheet is easy to exceed.
65,536 rows by
256 columns So how large of a report could we typically import to Excel before we hit an issue?
A report of more Let’s assume that the maximum number of lines per page is 60, and we take up 10 lines for
than 1,310 pages page headings, spacing and column headings, leaving us 50 data lines per page. On that basis
would be at risk of a report of more than 1,310 pages would be at risk of exceeding the Excel row limits.
exceeding the
Excel row limits Any sort of transaction-based report on a large database over a reasonable period of time
would likely exceed that number of pages.
“Chunking” is the
process of So if you still need to import your large report information into Excel for further data
splitting a large modelling what options do you have open?
report into more
manageable
blocks or “chunks”
Did you know? “A recent survey found that about
Once chunking is
enabled then 60% of Excel users don't ever use PivotTables”
reports greater
than the specified
size will be
automatically split
into multiple Excel
Solution (6)
There is only one solution to this problem – “chunking”.
spreadsheets
Chunking is the process of splitting a large report into more manageable blocks or “chunks”,
with each separately imported into Excel. Each chunk can be included as a separate
worksheet within a single Excel spreadsheet or as entirely separate Excel spreadsheets,
depending on the specific needs of the users.
The first way of “chunking” a report involves a programming solution to break a report into
multiple text files based on pre-determined parameters, and each one can then in turn be
imported separately into Excel. This solution would involve some time and effort, and
definitely some IT involvement.
The second way involves using a spool file management solution that “chunks” a report
automatically for you.
For example, SpooliT® allows a chunking option to be dynamically switched on when ever the
user wishes to engage chunking:
Figure 22: Switching "chunking" on in SpooliT®

Once the user enables chunking, then reports greater than the specified size will be split into
multiple Excel spreadsheets as appropriate. The user will be prompted by SpooliT® to choose
which page range they want to load into Excel.
This avoids the issue of the row limitation in Excel, but also opens up other use and
possibilities with the solution.

In the following example (Figure 23) the chunking rule was set to “Split into 1-page chunks
when a file is greater than 1 pages”; this effectively allows individual pages from any report to
be loaded separately into Excel.
Figure 23: Selecting a page to load to Excel in SpooliT®
The use of chunking in SpooliT® can be extended to importing Spool Files into other formats,
chunking is not limited to just Excel.
Problem (6) solved!

Key points
Issue (7)
Saving spool file run parameters into Excel
Excel data
becomes When a report is produced on the iSeries/AS400 there will invariably be certain information
disassociated with stored around the run parameters that generated the information. This might be as simple as
the original run including the date and time the report was generated, or as complex as including a series of
parameters parameters or values that the report was run against.
When the resulting report is viewed, it is always considered in context against the backdrop of
Report lines can these parameters. Thoughts such as “What date was this report run for?” or “What values was
be highlighted this report run against?” will also help us interpret the information more accurately and help
from the us come to the appropriate conclusions as a result.
originating spool
file to be loaded When traditional methods of importing information from these reports are used, the data
into Excel every becomes disassociated with the original run parameters. If the resulting Excel spreadsheet is
time the report is stored away from the originating report, then it rapidly becomes impossible to determine what
exported or when the originating data was constructed from. You may elect to manually add heading
rows to include this information, but again, this is a time consuming nuisance each time you
have to import data - and open to user error when transcribing the information.
Did you know? “The number of pages printed in

American offices is increasing by up to 20% each
year”
Solution (7)
Again, the solution is to use a 3rd party spool file management solution which allows title or
header lines from a spool file to be loaded once into the first few rows of the Excel
spreadsheet. In the example below, SpooliT® allows report lines highlighted from the originating
spool file to be loaded into Excel every time the report is exported using a SpooliT® template.
Figure 24: Selecting a report title in SpooliT®

In this case the first 3 lines from the spool file will be loaded into rows 1 to 3 of the resulting
Excel spreadsheet.
Figure 25: Report export to Excel with title
Problem (7) solved!

Key points
Issue (8)
Adding graphing and special formatting
Not easy to One of the most powerful features of Excel is the ability to graph and format information
preserve all of the quickly and easily, allowing for the effective communication of important report information.
formatting Combined with the ability to create formulas and calculations over report information, Excel is
information each an extremely powerful reporting tool.
time you load
data into a If you have a regular report in Excel that requires you to download information from an
spreadsheet iSeries/AS400 spool file, you will encounter the same problems again and again. It is not easy
to preserve all of the formatting information, graphs etc from your last report the next time
Go from a you need to load the data from a spool file. Typically this would at the very least involve a
multiple page “cut and paste” operation from an interim spreadsheet to a pre-formatted spreadsheet, along
green bar report with revisiting of formulas and graph conditions etc.
to a graphical
summary report This can be a time consuming process.
in Excel updated
in real-time Wouldn’t it be great if every time someone ran the source report in question on the
automatically as iSeries/AS400 your master spreadsheet was automatically updated in real time, without ANY
soon as the user intervention? Sound like an impossible dream; nothing is ever that simple, right? –
iSeries/AS400 Wrong! It can be done…
report is created You CAN go from…
by ANYONE on
your
iSeries/AS400
A spool file
management
solution that will
monitor your
iSeries/AS400 and
export a
formatted Excel
data spreadsheet
in real time to a
known location
with a known
name
A master Figure 26: Green bar report

spreadsheet that
uses standard To…
Excel spreadsheet
commands to
extract and
format the data as
required.
Figure 27: Master spreadsheet updated automatically from green bar report
You can go from a multiple page green bar report to a graphical summary report created in
Excel updated in real-time automatically the moment that the iSeries/AS400 spool file is
generated by ANYONE. How? It is a lot easier than you think!

Solution (8)
Your spool file The solution to presenting your reports graphically in Excel involves two important
management components.
solution monitors 1. A spool file management solution that will monitor your iSeries/AS400 and export a
for a specific formatted Excel data spreadsheet in real time to a known location with a known
report type to be name.
created on your 2. A master spreadsheet that uses standard Excel spreadsheet commands to extract
iSeries/AS400 and and format the data as required.
then automatically
exports it to a The concept is a simple one, your spool file management solution monitors for a specific
share drive report type to be created on your iSeries/AS400 and then automatically exports it to a share
location formatted drive location formatted via an Excel Template. This will of course overwrite any other excel
via an Excel spreadsheet in the same location, losing any formatting already prepared in that spreadsheet,
Template hence the need to have a 2nd “master” spreadsheet that simply loads the data from the
dynamically generated spreadsheet.
A 2nd “master”
spreadsheet that In the previous example (Figure 27) the SpooliT® software was used to create an Excel
simply loads the Template (similar to the ones describes in Solutions (1) to (7)) that formats our “Month to
data from the date sales register” into a resulting “data” spreadsheet that looks like the following:
dynamically
generated
spreadsheet
A SpooliT® job is created to monitor for our ACME4R2 report automatically in real-time, and as
soon as it is appears on an Outq, it is exported using our template to a specific share drive
folder and given a specific user-defined name.
Figure 28: Export job definition screen 1 in SpooliT®

The screen above (Figure 28) shows the initial set up of the real-time job in SpooliT® that will
monitor for our Month To Date report on the iSeries/AS400. The intention in this white paper
is not to describe this side of the solution in great detail, but rather demonstrate what can be
done with a good spool file management solution.
Did you know? “An Electric and Gas company

reported to save $239k in reduced paper
consumption by centralizing files, reducing
distribution and consolidating forms”
The next screen (Figure 29) in the real-time job definition allows the selection of a destination
for the export spool file. In this case the path “C:\Asymex\White Papers” has been chosen as
the target destination, although this could just have easily been an Intranet/Internet/FTP
location or a share drive location.
The next step is to ensure the report is exported using the Excel Template that was previously
defined and also to confirm the naming standard used for the exported file. The file-naming
standard being used will result in an exported spreadsheet called “Data
Spreadsheet.ACME4R2.xls”. The option to “Replace previously exported files with the same
name?” has also been selected to ensure that any existing data spreadsheet is overwritten
whenever anyone creates a new ACME4R2 on the iSeries computer.

The first part of our automation is complete, now the master spreadsheet can be set up.

The Master spreadsheet being created will summarise the example Month To Date sales report
into a one page executive summary with graph and a few extra formula cells. This is not
intended to be an overly complex example, but really just illustrate concepts that a user can
then build upon to create more elaborate summary reports.
Firstly we need to understand what the Month To Date Sales report is actually reporting on.
Simply put it shows total sales by customer and item with a quantity and dollar value, sorted
by the Sales Rep that they relate to and throwing to a new page on change of Sales Rep.
The summary report will show total sales for each sales rep, the number of sales each sales
rep made, their average sales value, and then graphing the total sales by sales rep so that we
can clearly see who the best performing sales rep is.
Step 1: First things first, since our report is being updated in real-time let’s give our report a
dynamically updated title.
The formula used was:

="My Month To Date Sales Report as at " & DAY(TODAY()) & "/" & MONTH(TODAY()) & "/" &
YEAR(TODAY())
If you wish to be even more elaborate you could populate the title with the actual report run
date and time from rows 1 and 2 of the data spreadsheet using the SUBSTR option.
Step 2: The source report ACME4R2 may have a variable number of sales reps each time it is
run. There is no guarantee that sales reps won’t be added or removed, and we do not want to
keep editing the master spreadsheet each time the report is run! So we need to dynamically
load the sales rep names into Column A using a simple Excel Query.
The option used is under the “Data” menu option in Excel, then “Get External Data” then “New
Database Query”. Next choose a data source of “Excel Files” and select “ok”, at the next
window navigate to your data spreadsheet and select it.
Make sure that you do check on “System Tables” under table options:
Select the column that contains the Sales Rep Name (using the preview button can help),
then you will have the opportunity to apply filter options. In this case filtered on two values:
• The columns value to “Is Not Null” to eliminate any blank names that might come
from any excel report headings in the first few rows
• The columns value to not equal to “Sales Rep Name” – the column heading already
loaded into the data spreadsheet.
Then select the option to sort by this column ascending.
Finally rather than selecting the “Return Data to Microsoft Excel” select the “View data or edit
query in Microsoft Query” option.
This will allow one more very important attribute of the query to be set.

Setting “Unique Values Only” will ensure that each Sales Rep Names will appear just once in
the Master spreadsheet. Now select “Return Data to Excel” from the “File” menu and you will
then be prompted as to which cell to start loading the data into.
The resulting query string that you have created will look like the following:
SELECT DISTINCT ÀCME4R2#txt$`.F2

FROM `C:\Asymex\white papers\Data Spreadsheet.ACME4R2`.ÀCME4R2#txt$`
ÀCME4R2#txt$`
WHERE (ÀCME4R2#txt$`.F2 Is Not Null And ÀCME4R2#txt$`.F2<>'Sales Rep Name')
ORDER BY ÀCME4R2#txt$`.F2
The next thing to do is right click on your tool bar in Excel and ensure that you have the
“External Data” tool bar check on. Then select the first cell in your query and select the
properties option from your “External Data” toolbar – the following window will be displayed.
Check on the option to “Refresh data on file option” and depending on how frequently your
source data changes then the “Refresh Every” option as well. Check of the “Include Field
Names” and you can then give the column a more meaningful name rather than being limited
to displaying the system column name. Check on the “Fill down formulas in columns adjacent
to data” – this is crucial for the next step.
Step 3: Now that we have our Sales Rep Names loading nicely into our master spreadsheet
from our data spreadsheet, we can extract some summary information for each sales rep.
The first column, Total Sales uses a SUMIF command:

=SUMIF('[Data Spreadsheet.ACME4R2.xls]ACME4X2.txt'!$B:$B,A3,'[Data
Spreadsheet.ACME4R2.xls]ACME4X2.txt'!$F:$F)
The next column, # of Sales, uses a COUNTIF command:

=COUNTIF('[Data Spreadsheet.ACME4R2.xls]ACME4X2.txt'!$B:$B,A3)
and finally the last column, Av. $ Sales is even simpler:

=B3/C3
By selecting the “Fill down formulas in columns adjacent to data” this will ensure that our
formulas get populated against each Sales Rep name, regardless of how many are added or
subtracted from our source report.
Step 4: Now the fun part, graphing our data. In this case the graph will simply show the top
15 sale reps.
This is using standard Excel graphing functionality – and will be dynamically updated as our
source data changes.
In summary, the three steps to add graphing and special formatting using SpooliT®are:
• Create the data spreadsheet via an Excel Template (which is reusable)
• Automate the Outq monitoring, then
• Create a master spreadsheet linked to the data spreadsheet
Now all that remains is to display your spreadsheet and watch as it dynamically changes and
re-graphs before your eyes in real-time the moment someone generates your source report
on the iSeries/AS400 – SpooliT® magic!
Problem (8) solved!

Key points
Issue (9)
Re-using and sharing your Excel format definitions
Need 1: Re-use When you have created an elaborate format to map your source report from your
your formatting iSeries/AS400 computer to Excel that does everything you could possibly want, there are two
the next time you important things that you would now understandably like to do next:
want to import 1. Re-use your formatting the next time you want to import this report into Excel
this report into 2. Share your formatting definitions with other users
Excel
This can be a problem with traditional methods of importing data to Excel.
Need 2: Share
your formatting If you use the Excel “Text Import Wizard” you cannot save your definition, if you use certain
definitions with 3rd party spool file management solutions you are able to save your definitions but you cannot
other users share them.
SpooliT® allows you What is the answer?

to create an
“Excel Template”
which allows you Did you know? “A telecommunications company
to store your
format definitions reportedly save 25+ tons of paper by expanding the
for re-use and use of electronic purchase orders and invoices”
sharing
Solution (9)
As you might expect, the solution to this issue is to use a spool file management solution that
allows you to 1) define your Excel export formats, 2) save them and 3) share them with other
users.
In the examples referred to in this whitepaper the spool file management software that is
used is SpooliT®. As previously described, SpooliT®allows you to create an “Excel Template”
which allows you to store your format definitions for re-use and sharing.
Figure 31: working with templates in SpooliT®

Templates can now be exported and imported as “.tpl” files ( proprietary format to SpooliT®). If
you wish to share a template with another user you can export it to a .tpl file and the either
email it or save it on a share drive folder. Libraries of templates can be created on share drive
folders for users to import them as required. Imported Templates can easily be modified or
“tweaked” for other views over the data without have to build a template from scratch.
Problem (9) solved!

Key points
Issue (10)
Automated real-time distribution of spool files into Excel via
If you are going to email or intranet
present
information in
Excel then you Defining how you would like to format data from an iSeries/AS400 spool file into Excel is only
need to have it half the battle; if you have to rely on another person to run the report or export it for you
seamlessly then you are almost back at square one. If you are creating a summary report for an
integrated executive, you can not expect them to have the time (or necessarily even the technical skills)
to know where to look on your iSeries/AS400 to find the source report and then export it into
Ideally users Excel.
should just open
an email and see If you are going to present information in Excel then you need to have it seamlessly
the spreadsheet integrated – click on one button and up pops the excel spreadsheet. Issue (8) covered a
delivered to them, solution to this requirement that allowed for the resulting spreadsheet to be updated in real
or have a short time. But what if you wanted to send that Excel spreadsheet to a number of recipients? Again
cut set up on the you need to have the same level of simplicity – ideally the user should just open an email and
desktop that see the spreadsheet delivered to them, or have a short cut set up on the desktop that
displays the displays the spreadsheet from a URL link.
spreadsheet from
a URL link This level of automation would have been an impossible dream a few years ago, but now it is
remarkably easy to set up with today’s next generation of spool file management software.
Define tasks or
jobs to monitor
for certain types Did you know? “A major IT outsourcing company
of spool files, then
reported saving of $230k by putting large documents
convert them to
Excel using our on the internet/intranet instead of printing”
template “rules”,
then either email
a copy to the
appropriate Solution (10)
distribution list
A good spool file management solution should be able to deliver on our requirement above
with ease. Users should be able to define tasks or jobs to monitor for certain types of spool
Define tasks or files, then convert them to Excel using SpooliT® template “rules”, then either email a copy to
jobs to monitor the appropriate distribution list OR write the Excel spreadsheet to a intranet, internet or FTP
for certain types location and then just send the appropriate recipients URL links. This is the ultimate “thin
of spool files, then client” solution for distributing formatted iSeires/AS400 reports.
write the Excel
spreadsheet to a
The example software used to demonstrate this functionality is again SpooliT®, this time the
intranet, internet
or FTP location SpooliT® Server and SpooliT® Scheduler automation software.
and then just
send the Step 1: Firstly a few simple rules need to be defined to identify which report or reports we
appropriate wish to convert to Excel – known as Categorization Rules within SpooliT®. The automation
recipients URL software will use these rules later as it monitors the iSeries/AS400.
links
The Categorization Rules are divided into two types:
o Categorization Rules by Attribute: Which identify the report/s by one or more
combinations of the 8 spool file attributes; e.g. File name = “ACME4R2” and Outq
must start with “Dayend”
o Categorization Rules by Name: Which identify the report/s by content; e.g. the report
must contain the text string “Month To Date Sales Register”
The Categorization Rules can be as general or as specific needed to identify the required
reports. However an Excel Template are usually very context specific for a particular type of
report, the categorization rules would also need to be as equally specific. It is unlikely that an
Excel Template created for one report would work over an entirely different type of report.

The screen shot below (Figure 32) shows the definition of a Categorization Rule by Attribute
for our Month To Date Sales Register
Figure 32: Setting up Categorization Rules in SpooliT®
Step 2: Now that we have defined rules that allow SpooliT® to recognize our spool file/s on the
iSeries/AS400, we need to set up a list of recipients for this report. This way SpooliT®can
automatically email either a copy of the report converted to Excel OR a URL link to the Excel
Spreadsheet that SpooliT® has automatically created in the specified Intranet/Internet/FTP
location.
Figure 33: Setting up report recipients in SpooliT®

These recipients are not limited to just receiving the converted report in Excel, they can also
chose from combinations of 5 other report types AND each recipient can have their own
preference set up for how they would like their report delivered to them.

Step 3: We can now define our task or “Scheduled job” within SpooliT® to monitor for the
reports that we are interested in. These jobs run off the iSeries/AS400 on a pc or application
server, which means no performance impact on the iSeries/AS400. They can be set up to
monitor in real-time, or at a predetermined intervals ranging from minutes up to a year.
As with the solution described in Issue (8), we define an “Export To” job:
Select the option to “Export iSeries report(s) by Categorization Rules” choosing the rule we
set up in Step 1. It is worth noting that within this single job it is possible to also initiate the
report to be created in the first place, by using the “iSeries Job” tab.
We can now select the “Export To” tab to chose the destination for the converted report,
either a folder location (any location mapped to the pc) or an FTP location.
Figure 34: Defining a FTP location in SpooliT®

The flexibility of using an FTP location means that you can export spool files automatically to a
file server sitting behind a firewall in any format that you require. This enables a “thin client”
solution for electronic delivery of iSeries/AS400 reports – that is your recipients only need
security access to your web site and a web browser to be able to view spool files (converted
into any format). They do not need any other software loaded on to their workstations nor do
they need to have access to your iSeries/AS400 machine itself.
You may set up short cuts to specific FTP locations to display a user’s reports if you are
delivering a known report to them on a regular basis, otherwise if the report delivery can be
variable then you may prefer to automatically send them an email with a URL link to the
reports in question.

The recipient list is inherited from the names defined in Step 2, but may be overridden and
modified for each individual job.
Figure 35: Setting up recipients to an export job in SpooliT®
Step 4: The job may now be submitted to run under SpooliT® Scheduler.
The job that was defined above will now monitor for the “Month To Date Sales Register”
report in real-time.
As soon as that report is created on the iSeries/AS400 by ANY user, the SpooliT® job will:
• Detect the spool file/s
• Convert the spool file/s to Excel using the template rules specified
• Export the spool file/s via FTP to the www.asymex.com/Spool files location
• Email our 4 recipients an email with a URL link to the converted report/s.
A true “set and forget” solution with no further user intervention required!
Problem (10) solved!

Key points
THE CASE STUDY:
Nike’s Excel Automation Project
Nike Australia
implemented the
SpooliT® Enterprise Nike Australia implemented the SpooliT® Enterprise solution to automate the way certain AS400
solution reports were converted to Excel and how all of their reports were distributed to users.
Business Model
Many reports are Nike distributes and sells a variety of sporting goods and apparel throughout Australia. Nike
automatically has a number of their own retail outlets, as well as supplying a large number of 3rd party
produced on a retailers throughout the country. They have offices in a number of states.
nightly, weekly
monthly and
yearly basis from Computer Systems and Infrastructure
automated batch Nike operates an iSeries computer system for most of their business systems, running some
processing modules of the JDE software and a variety of in-house developed applications. Interstate
offices are connected via a Windows NT network, with a variety of client PC operating systems
including Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows 98 and Windows XP. Communications are via
All reports were TCP/IP over the network, using Microsoft Outlook for all e-Mail.
currently printed
The I.T. Did you know? “A state bureaucracy reduced their

operations print margins to .75 and reported an annual saving of
department with
staff of two (at a
up to $123k in printing consumables”
cost of US$30K
each per annum)
are required to
Existing Business Operation
change paper,
Nike iSeries computer system services Ordering, Billing, Retail, Warehousing, and Sales
burst and collate
Analysis. Other in-house systems include Marketing and Sales Reporting.
reports, answer
printer messages
Nike runs a 'Dayend' each weekday on the iSeries, together with ‘Monthend' batch runs. Many
and produce on-
reports are produced and printed on a variety of iSeries attached printers.
demand reports
Current Situation
A detailed analysis highlighted that the iSeries computer was the source of a majority of the
The monthly reports produced by the company. Many reports are automatically produced on a nightly and
budget for the monthly basis from automated batch processing. In addition a significant number of reports
purchase of are produced daily on-demand.
paper,
consumables All reports were printed.
(such as printer
ribbons and toner Several reports regularly exceed 1000 pages in size, whilst other smaller reports are printed
cartridges), with multiple copies (i.e. 20 copies sent to each sales representative).
printer
replacement and The I.T. operations department with staff of one (at a cost of US$30K per annum) are
maintenance required to change paper, burst and collate reports, answer printer messages and produce on-
contracts exceed demand reports. During the ‘Month-end' batch runs the operator is required to work overtime
US$10K per in order to produce, burst, collate and distribute reports by start of business on Monday. The
annum. additional overtime cost for the operator was calculated at US$10K per annum.
The monthly budget for the purchase of paper, consumables (such as printer ribbons and
toner cartridges), printer replacement and maintenance contracts exceed US$10K per annum.

Key points Temporary administrative assistants were occasionally employed at an annual cost of US$3K
to assist during peak times. The envelope and postage costs amount to US$1000 per annum.
Nike made a Hard copy of reports are stored for audit and legal requirements indefinitely in secure off-site
commitment to storage. The cost of storage is increasing annually at US$1000 as additional reports continue
substantially to be produced.
reduce use of
consumables and
Business Requirement
implement a
After an audit of internal operations, Nike made a commitment to substantially reduce use of
'Waste-Busters
consumables and implement a 'Waste-Busters Plan', promoting a 'Greener' and a more
Plan', promoting a
environmentally conscious corporate culture.
'Greener' and a
The linchpin to this plan revolved around the reduction of the use of paper and associated
more
consumables by effective utilization of technology.
environmentally
A commitment was also made to reduce the number of physical reports produced for external
conscious
parties such as suppliers and customers; e-mail, where possible, is to become the standard
corporate culture
method of distribution.
A decision was also made to reduce the operations department overtime and the use of
temporary staff. Nike required a more efficient and timely method to distribute reports to
A decision was
head office staff, branch staff and Nike retail outlets. The need to be able to electronically
also made to
backup or archive reports was an important consideration. It was mandatory that a solution
reduce the
be found to ensure that data was no longer re-entered from printed reports into Excel or other
operations
PC applications. The cost of such double handling was considered both expensive and
department
inefficient.
overtime and the
use of temporary
staff. Did you know? “Nearly 3.7 million tons of copy
paper are used annually in the United States alone.
That's over 700 trillion sheets”
SpooliT® reduces
the need to print
hardcopy How did SpooliT help?
SpooliT®Server was purchased and installed with the following goals:

As reports are
archived from the Printer consumables reduction: SpooliT® reduced the need to print hardcopy. With SpooliT®
iSeries computer Viewer (which has an unlimited site licence included FREE with every purchase of SpooliT®
to SpooliT® they Enterprise, Server, Explorer or Browser) enabled all the Nike users may view archived reports
are automatically on-line without the need for an iSeries connection or profile. Reports are imported into
e-mailed or faxed common windows applications
to the Supplier or
Customer with NO
operator or staff Operator over-time reduction: Jobs may be created within SpooliT® Server to monitor
intervention certain iSeries Jobqs and automatically archive their contents to SpooliT® . These jobs can be
required set to run after Dayend, Weekend, Monthend and Yearend. Categorization and distribution
rules are also set up within SpooliT to "file" each report in an appropriate Category and then
automatically e-mail it to the required users. Individual users with "special" requirements may
even automatically receive multiple electronic copies of each report in a number of different
Local Network formats (for example, as a Word document AND as an Excel spreadsheet). No programming
printers were was required and only minimal operator DIY ("do it yourself") training was required with
used to print SpooliT® using their comprehensive tutorial and help system.
reports, allowing
iSeries printers to
be Temporary staff and postage cost reduction: Suppliers and Customers are set up within
decommissioned
SpooliT® as Users, and e-mail addresses or fax numbers are entered for each of them. They are
over time
then set-up on distribution rules for the relevant Archive's Categories. As reports are archived
from the iSeries computer to SpooliT they are automatically e-mailed or faxed to the Supplier
or Customer with NO operator or staff intervention required. Nike even customized the format
that the Supplier or Customer prefers to receive their reports in – with no effort required!
iSeries Printer Cost reduction: Local Network printers were used to print reports, allowing
iSeries printers to be decommissioned over time.

Key points Document storage cost reduction: Reports are archived to SpooliT and then cut to CD. The
CDs are then duplicated and stored off-site in accordance with the existing backup policy.
Significant net Saving in re-entry and manipulation of data: Reports can easily be exported into a
savings obtained variety of PC based application such as Excel, CSV files or Word, PDF or HTML. The saving in
in first year man-hours was extraordinary. Users could create templates to extract the required data direct
from a complex report and reformat the data into Excel for further analysis with the click of
button. Templates are reusable and automated jobs could be created to repeat tasks.
Faster report
distribution, The bottom line for Nike
easier and
cheaper retrieval Saving - Printer and Consumable budget halved US$5,000
of archived Saving - Operator Overtime US$10,000
reports
Saving - Temporary Staff US$3,000
Saving - Postage and envelopes US$1,000
Saving - Document Storage US$1,000
Saving – Re-entry and manipulation of data US$20,000
“SpooliT® enabled
Total Saving in first year US$40,000
us to take a big
step towards
becoming a true
paperless
workplace.” Did you know? “According to the Minnesota Office
of Environmental Assistance, the average office
worker uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper each year”
Intangible benefits include: Faster report distribution, easier and cheaper retrieval of
archived reports, scalability, workflow benefits, and ability to support on-going diversified
business requirements at virtually no cost.
Testimonial: “SpooliT enabled us to take a big step

towards becoming a true paperless workplace. That's
good for us and good for the environment. We give
them the big tick" - Nike Australia

Key points
Conclusion
Exporting spool Exporting data into Excel from an iSeries/AS400 computer doesn’t have to be a difficult or
files to Excel can onerous task. With the right tools and a little bit of “know how” it can be a fast, efficient and
be easy rewarding process.
Re-usable Excel is a tremendous tool for not only analysing data but also for presenting information in a
templates can clear and concise fashion – so use it more!
format the data
the way you want You should not be constrained by the location of your data warehouse – if the information you
into Excel need resides on your iSeries/AS400 you can still format it into Excel in a seamless and
automated fashion.
Link Master
spreadsheet to The issues and solutions described in this whitepaper are intended to spark your imagination
automatically and to get you thinking about how you can apply these concepts to your business. The
generated data examples described are just the tip of the iceberg – the next step is to take these ideas and
spreadsheets apply them to your environment and start introducing real efficiencies.
Automate your
conversion to
Start EXCELerating your iSeries/AS400 today!
Excel by using 3rd
party spool file
management
solutions Author: Alex B. Martin BSc (Computer Science)
Automate
distribution to
save money, time
and be more
efficient
For more information on the SpooliT

please visit our web site at
www.SpooliT.net

Converting AS400 Spool Files To Excel

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- Top 10 issues resolved!

“Why does it take

“I can’t read this

“Is the printer

Figure 2: Example of hardcopy report imported into Excel

Did you know? “Of a 1000 regular Excel users

© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 2 of 33

Figure 3: SpooliT® template omission rule

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Figure 4: SpooliT® template properties

Figure 5: SpooliT® template column definitions

© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 4 of 33

Figure 6: Spreadsheet with unwanted rows dropped

Problem (1) solved!

© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 5 of 33

© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 6 of 33

Figure 7: Working with templates within SpooliT®

Figure 8: Selecting the "Cust No" column in SpooliT® Template

Figure 9: Changing the column order in a SpooliT® template

Figure 10: Setting the Excel field types in SpooliT® templates

Problem (2) solved!

© Copyright Asymex Pty Ltd Page 8 of 33

Figure 11: Negative number in Excel without formatting

Did you know? “The average American office worker

Figure 12: Selecting a negative column in SpooliT®

Figure 13: Negative numbers correctly formatted into Excel

Problem (3) solved!

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Figure 14: Data mining definition is SpooliT®

Problem (4) solved!

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Use spool file

Figure 16: Example of a de-normalized spreadsheet

Did you know? “Consider the cost of buying paper

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Figure 17: Defining a format in SpooliT®

Figure 18: Defining a constant field in SpooliT®

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Figure 19: Sales Rep field

Figure 20: Sales Rep Name field

Figure 21: Defining the next format in SpooliT®

Problem (5) solved!

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Figure 22: Switching "chunking" on in SpooliT®

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Figure 23: Selecting a page to load to Excel in SpooliT®

Problem (6) solved!

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Did you know? “The number of pages printed in

Figure 24: Selecting a report title in SpooliT®

Figure 25: Report export to Excel with title

Problem (7) solved!

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A master Figure 26: Green bar report

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Figure 28: Export job definition screen 1 in SpooliT®

Did you know? “An Electric and Gas company

Figure 29: Export job definition screen 2 in SpooliT®

Figure 30: Export job definition screen 3 in SpooliT®

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The formula used was: